“We’ll Definitely Come Back to Save You!” — It’s Been Three Years Since I Was Left in the Most Difficult Dungeon, Isn’t It About Time for Help to Arrive...? - 42-43

Chapter 42: Meanwhile, Knight Wurfe Starts Looking for Party Members Part 3

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As the start time for the joint Demon Lord Subjugation mission drew near, Wurfe repeatedly eased the conditions for party recruitment. When no one came, he relaxed the conditions even further—and did so again and again.

By the end, the conditions he ended up posting were a far cry from what he had originally envisioned.

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“Demon Lord Subjugation Joint Mission – Participants Wanted”

Recruiter: Party “Ordoll” Leader – Wurfe Granzel

Open Positions: 3 (1 frontline, 1 magic user, 1 priest)

Requirements: Possession of a C-rank guild certification or equivalent skill

Reward: 20% of the joint mission’s total reward

※ An advance payment of 200,000 sert per person will be provided

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To think I’d be paying an advance payment to this level of people…

Clenching the recruitment flyer in his hand, Wurfe looked toward the three adventurers standing in front of him, his face stiff. On the left stood a skinny man with glasses, his navy-blue hair slightly covering his eyes. He was a B-rank wizard.

“Nice to meet you. Name’s Drawlan. I intend to earn every bit of the reward, so let’s work well together.”

Drawlan emphasized the word reward, shooting Wurfe a sharp look through his lenses.

This guy… He’s sizing me up like I’m some bargain-bin item… What a smug bastard.

Next, Wurfe turned his gaze to the middle—a restless girl swaying side to side.

“Huh? Is it my turn next~? Okay, I’ll introduce myself~!”

With her childish height, large sky-blue twin tails, and a voice so shrill it pierced the ears, she inevitably began drawing stares from those around them.

“I’m Hime~! I’m a priest~! Y’know, I saw that old man over there sitting all by himself looking super pitiful~ so I decided to join out of pity~! You better be grateful, okay? ♪”

“Hey, you brat! Who’re you calling an old man!? And I’m not some loner! I only called you guys because my usual members weren’t available!”

“Huh? But you totally have an old guy face, and your bangs are thinning~♡ Why not just admit you’re a pathetic, balding loner~?”

As Hime’s merciless taunts flew, laughter began to ripple from the surrounding adventurers.

She said she’s a B-rank priest, so I added her to the party, but she’s obviously just a damn brat! If she ends up being useless, I swear I’ll feed her to the monsters…

Wurfe clenched his fists to suppress his anger, then tilted his chin toward the last remaining one—a quiet girl standing on the right—and signaled her to introduce herself.

“…Satsuki.”

“…What? That’s it?”

“…Is there something else I should say?”

With deep green hair tied back and flowing down to her waist, the girl wore elegant clothing rarely seen in this region. Two short blades were strapped at her side, and from her forehead, a decorative cord was tied around a single horn protruding slightly to one side. Her name was Satsuki.

In stark contrast to Hime’s brazen attitude earlier, her utter lack of engagement left Wurfe visibly disoriented.

…Of the three, she might be the least bad. But I’m pretty sure she’s C-rank, right? Can’t expect much from someone at that level…

Deciding it would be safest to treat her as a disposable pawn if needed, Wurfe mentally braced himself against the dismal quality of his current team.

Damn it… Every last one of them is a budget version of the real deal…!

He bit down hard, seething at the reality that had brought him to this point.

Eishia, Ripley, Midi… How dare you all pull that stunt on me…! If you three were still here, I wouldn’t have had to offer advance pay, and everything ahead would’ve been so much easier…

Wurfe had no idea that one of the three had already regained her senses. Clinging to an unattainable ideal, his reality was about to take a sharp turn from this moment forward.

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Chapter 43: Meanwhile, Knight Wurfe Starts Looking for Party Members Part 4

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“…Wurfe. I’m the leader of Ordoll, and I serve as the party’s Knight.”

After hearing the other three introduce themselves, Wurfe begrudgingly stated his name and role.

Snicker… Snicker…

Even just saying his own name, the laughter from those around him pricked at Wurfe’s ears. The source of the shame was unclear, but it scraped at his nerves all the same.

“…That’s everyone, then. With introductions out of the way, the four of us will now be participating in the rumored Demon Lord Subjugation mission…”

Drawlan adjusted his glasses with a push of his fingertip as he observed the other three.

“I wonder what the Demon Lord’s like~? I heard he’s ten times bigger than a normal person, like a massive giant~?”

Hime bounced onto a nearby barrel-chair, swinging her legs as she shared what she knew.

“I heard it’s a monster that exudes such intense malice that just seeing it can make you pass out… But, well, those are probably exaggerated for dramatic effect. Satsuki-san, do you know anything?”

“…Nothing. If it’s strong, I’ll kill it. That’s all.”

Satsuki muttered flatly and quickly turned her gaze back to the view outside the window.

“I see. Well, everyone’s entitled to their own thinking. As for me, I won’t complain as long as I get paid.”

“Heeey~ Glasses-kun, you’re kinda greedy, huh~? What are you gonna do with all that money~?”

“…It’s for my retirement.”

“Reeeally~? Are you suuure~? I bet you’re secretly interested in naughty shops, aren’t you~? You totally give off virgin vibes, Glasses-kun~♡”

“…We just met, and already you’re being incredibly rude… And no, I assure you, it’s not for anything so vulgar. I simply need the money. Desperately. …What about you?”

“Me? I’m not really interested in money—”

BANG!

Just as their conversation began to pick up, Wurfe stomped loudly on the wooden floor with his boot.

“You lot! Quit the unrelated chatter and let’s move! It’s almost time to assemble!”

Uncomfortable and agitated, Wurfe barked out orders and headed to the meeting point alone.

“…Grumpy old man. What’s he so irritated about?”

“…Either way, we should go too.”

“…”

And so, with a tinge of unease, the three followed after the man who had hired them.

The First “Demon Lord Subjugation Joint Mission.”

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Its outline was as followed. A small elite unit comprised of four parties, each led by an A-rank adventurer, will investigate the ‘Southeastern Forest’ and the periphery of ‘Niflheim’—where the Demon Lord has been sighted. The goal is to locate the Demon Lord’s base or the origin point of his appearance.

The mission was for reconnaissance, not combat. It was the guild’s strategy to minimize casualties before the true, main operation.

After receiving the briefing, Wurfe and his team had a brief introduction session with the other parties participating in the joint operation. Then, each team began heading toward their first objective: the Southeastern Forest.

“Quit dragging your feet! We’re gonna find that bastard and put him down, fast!”

“Wait! Oji-san! Your pace is way too fast!”

“…You’re being overly emotional. Let me remind you, this is just a reconnaissance mission. Acting rashly—”

“Just shut up and follow me!”

Watch me…! I’ll rack up achievements here and show those smug bastards just how strong I really am…!

Wurfe completely ignored the warnings around him and marched into the depths of the forest at his own pace.

Waiting at the end of his lone charge was a massive serpent, over five meters in length. Its body retained the natural curves of a snake, but each individual scale shone with a dull metallic sheen, functioning as armor to deflect blades.

“…Steel-Scaled Serpent, Gardonea. A B-rank monster, huh.”

At this level, I can handle it solo. Perfect. I’ll use this to show those three behind me what I’m really capable of.

Wurfe drew his sword and shield—gear he had spent a fortune to acquire—and, still wearing his pride like a gauntlet, charged straight at his prey.

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